The former Fox News and CBS News reporter was ordered to pay a fine of $800 per day until she divulges her sources.
A federal judge found veteran reporter Catherine Herridge in contempt of court on Thursday for refusing to identify the sources she used for a 2017 investigative series relating to an FBI probe into a Chinese scientist.
Ms. Herridge wrote the investigative series on Chinese scientist Yanping Chen during her tenure at Fox News. She transitioned from Fox News to CBS News in 2019 but was recently laid off from CBS News.
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper in Washington ordered Ms. Herridge to pay an $800 fine per day until she divulges her sources. She will be given time to appeal before the fine goes into effect.
In his 24-page ruling, Judge Cooper said that he recognizes “the paramount importance of a free press” and the need to use confidential sources in investigative journalism, but that the court also has “its own role to play in upholding the law and safeguarding judicial authority.”
“Herridge and many of her colleagues in the journalism community may disagree with that decision and prefer that a different balance be struck, but she is not permitted to flout a federal court’s order with impunity,” said Judge Cooper, an appointee of former President Barrack Obama.
The source is being sought by Ms. Chen, who has sued the government over the leak of details about the federal probe into statements she made on immigration forms related to work on a Chinese astronaut program.
Lawyers representing Ms. Herridge and Fox News had argued that journalists are protected by the First Amendment from most requests and that Ms. Chen hadn’t met the threshold to override the protection.
However, the judge ruled that Ms. Chen’s “need for the requested information to vindicate her rights under the Privacy Act overcame Herridge’s qualified First Amendment reporter’s privilege in this case.”
‘Deeply Chilling’
Fox News has defended Ms. Herridge and warned that the ruling could have “a deeply chilling effect on journalism.”
“Fox News Media remains committed to protecting the rights of a free press and freedom of speech, and believes this decision should be appealed,” the company told CNN following the court’s decision.
